Hcs 578/Ethics

Video Analysis Paper

HCS/578

Professor Susan Kajfasz 

Describe your reaction to the content of the video.

It is embarrassing to say that watching the video and researching articles is the first time that I have taken to actually review all of the facts surrounding the recall of Vioxx. I vaguely remember seeing ads in magazines and television commercials urging Vioxx users to call a 1-800 number listed at the end of the article or at the bottom of the television screen. However, I did not understand the depth of the recall or the implications that it meant for both the pharmaceutical company and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) until today. The video made me angry that money seems to prevail over everything including the health and well-being of consumers. Greed outweighs the value of life in this case and nothing was done to protect Vioxx users until many had died or experienced life altering debilitation.

I also did not understand the role of the FDA in the drug approval process prior to watching the video and reading subsequent articles. According to the article written by Matthew Perrone with the Associated Press, the FDA gives most of its funding and decision making power to scientists who approve new drugs when the overwhelming consensus in that the FDA should invest more in researching the safety of drugs that are currently on the market (Perrone, 2009). This appears to be a huge missed opportunity for the FDA to have an immediate impact on protecting the public from unnecessary harm and danger. There is very little drug oversight once pharmaceuticals hit the market.

After watching this video I was left to wonder who is doing the follow up. I was left to wonder who reviews the drug after the initial approval to make sure that there are no long term side effects. I have always had the impression that drug companies have tremendous influence in Washington but this video seemed to paint that relationship in a negative light and made it...